Maccabi Tel Aviv coach ahead of the Cup semi-final against Holon: "Maccabi has the motivation to win every game" • Stefanos Dadas: "Hungry people come" • Idan Zalmanson: "We have a history with Rishon LeZion, Jerusalem is always aiming for titles" • Nimrod Tishman: "We're an underdog but we'll try to surprise"
Dadas and Sapropoulos
Photography:
Alan Shiver
The semi-finals of the State Cup will take place tomorrow (Thursday) at the Drive-In Hall in Tel Aviv, with the early game meeting between the holder of the Hapoel Jerusalem Cup and Maccabi Rishon Lezion, and in the main game Maccabi Tel Aviv will meet Hapoel Holon.
Ahead of the games, a press conference was held this morning with the participation of a coach and a player from each team.
The chairman of the basketball association, Amiram Halevi, opened the event and said that no date has yet been set for the cup final, in the hope that in the future an audience will be allowed to enter the final game.
"We are not in good shape, in a less good period. We know it is a trophy and we want to put the troubles aside," said
Nimrod Tishman
from Maccabi Rishon LeZion. "In the last two years we have reached this status to my delight.
We have the confidence that it can be done, the memory remains.
There are surprises in the cup, we are an underdog, but we will try to surprise. "
"It's definitely a big challenge," coach
Guy Goodes said
.
"One game you have to bring your best to 40 minutes. I'm glad we've been able to do that many times in the last two years in these positions. From my experience always in one game you can rise. Is it related to the last month? Could be yes and maybe not. Depends on how "Everyone will arrive individually and how we will arrive as a team. It is clear that Jerusalem has the advantage in terms of ability, but what is important is the mental ability. From our side we will do our best, we will try to neutralize the whole last month."
The coach added: "As a club it is important for us to be in the semi-finals. In my first year I came in a difficult period and we made a change. This year with all the upheavals, and the young players, we finished building the team last. We will find our pace, we have a break after the game and then we will try. "Arrange the lines and think about how to get stronger. I'm optimistic."
Idan Zalmanson
from Hapoel Jerusalem: "Like Sunday, we also come after not easy losses and were eliminated from Europe. Promise that we will get this game ready one hundred percent and leave everything on the floor. Trust the players and the coach to win this game. The biggest challenge is to put everyone on the same page. "The method is different, the club has gone through something. We were not used to it. Basketball is a matter of adjustments. Despite the recent games we are on an improving trend. We are the trophy holders and we will reach this mentality to win the game."
The Jerusalem center continued: "After the last loss we had a conversation and marked this game as the key to changing the season. In Jerusalem titles is a synonym for the club and we always want to compete for them. Everyone understands the meaning of a knockout game, against a difficult opponent we have history with in recent years. "This is a super critical game for us, you will see it tomorrow on the pitch. We have progressed after the relegation from the Champions League, moving forward and looking at what is left - a trophy and a championship, and we are aiming for that."
Reds coach
Dainius Adomitis
: "The most important thing is to progress in every training session. We will get ready. It's like a final, we will fight for a ball throughout the game. To make changes in basketball you have to train. At this point we are not good enough, we have too many ups and downs. "Sometimes it's a matter of concentration, and sometimes making decisions. I believe in the players, the training is very good, sometimes better than the games. You have to play 40 minutes."
On Chris Kramer's injury: "Basketball is a 5-on-5 game. Put the injuries aside and play with whoever you are. We will play without Kramer, everyone else will have to be prepared, that's how it is in sports. We have experienced players and I believe they will be fine."
Maccabi Tel Aviv player,
Yuval Sussman
: "Our games with Holon were close with high offensive ability.
We will try to give them a strong defense and stop them on a low score, disrupting their passing game and erupting after a rebound.
The big differences in the last games?
Whatever it was, we are facing Holon.
We need to compare our energy level and aggressiveness to them.
There is no difference between a Euroleague game and a league or cup game.
Get ready for every game, watch the video and know what to do. "
Yellows coach
Yannis Sapropoulos
: "We have not taken the trophy since I arrived, but we have won championships. Now is a good opportunity for us to win this title. We respect Holon, we know each other. It is important to stick to our game plan. The club is more than me, no matter How many years you will be in the club he will always be bigger than you, so I do not take personally that I did not win the trophy.I will do my best for the club and not for my personal ambitions.
"The DNA of the club is that you always want to win. When you play a knockout anything can happen, a trophy is a factory of surprises we know it. The most important thing is that we stay focused. We have motivation whether we win the title 4 times in a row or not, the motivation is always High in Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Greek derby on the lines?
This is not a battle between me and Dadas, this is between Maccabi and Holon. "
Hapoel Holon captain
Guy Pnini
: "I was in these meetings on both sides, so I know how it feels on both Maccabi and Holon and in both cases there is pressure. An entire season drains into one game and everyone wants to get in the best shape. We need to be focused on our game plan from the moment First and believe in it, whether it goes or not.We have a good feeling this season, and hope to see it tomorrow too.
"At Maccabi, when you reach such a status, everyone expects you to take the trophy or the title easily, and the reality is not like that, I know how hard it is to win the title. In Holon it is the same story, we have expectations to bring success and for me in both cases there is pressure and expectation and we as athletes need Deal with it and bring results. "
On a fifth foreign registration: "An amazing move for the management who have signed up to register five foreigners. Our audience has not much to add, their love and support for the club is known and everyone knows what their power is and they have shown all their heart now. In the locker room we gladly accepted it. "It's not pleasant to put players aside in every game, and we want to play as one team in all the factories."
Purple coach
Stefanos Dadas
: "As a club we are very ambitious and want to reach Final 4 in every event we participate in. We come very hungry. Maccabi is the best team in Israel and we know them very well and respect them. It is going to be very difficult. We have confidence but every game He's different. We'll try to make it harder for them, show our strengths and hide our weaknesses. We need to be more careful than we were in the Winner's Cup final.
"Five foreigners can allow us a wider rotation, and I don't have to make an excuse for the players why they don't play. Sure it's an advantage, but we still have to be focused and perform tomorrow. The Greek derby? Everyone knows Yannis was the first to believe in my talent and ambition to be a coach. But we are here to talk about the semi-final between the two teams and not the coaches, I do not think there is such a thing as a Greek derby. "